Recipe: Brown Rice and Beans with Ginger Chile Salsa

Brown Rice and Beans with Ginger Chile Salsa

Bon Appetit Magazine, Apr 2013, p. 42

4 stars

This was fine... another version of a Mexican "bowl." I was not a fan of the ginger chile salsa -- I think it was too acidic, but everything else was good; a good base of a bowl.

Ingredients: brown rice, black beans, onion, cilantro, jalapenos, vegetable broth, garlic, ginger, lime zest, lime juice, olive oil, ground coriander, ground cumin, Kosher salt, pepper, avocado, Cotija or feta cheese

Recipe: King Ranch Casserole

King Ranch Casserole

Food & Wine Magazine, Feb 2025, p. 48

4.8 stars

Really delicious, not hard for a weekday meal, but it's not super healthy -- though we tried to make it healthier!

Ingredients: corn tortillas, rotisserie chicken, red bell pepper, yellow onion, diced tomatoes and green chiles, chicken broth, heavy cream, sour cream, salsa macha verde, unsalted butter, all-purpose flour, Monterey Jack cheese, chili powder, ground cumin, Kosher salt

Serve with avocado and fresh cilantro

Tips/Notes:

• Instead of rotisserie chicken, added a can of drained black beans and 1.5 cup of cooked quinoa
• Instead of rotel, used one can (about 14.5 oz) of diced tomatoes and a 4 oz can of chopped hatch chiles
• Used vegetable broth instead of chicken broth, and because of the greater quantity of tomatoes and hatch chiles, cut down the broth to 2 cups
• Cut up the corn tortillas
• Cooked everything in a large casserole dish

Recipe: Layered Taco Salad

Layered Taco Salad
Gourmet Magazine, Aug 2023
4.8 stars

Really great recipe! I think this is the best taco beef recipe we've made -- so flavorful and moist with the tomato sauce.

Salad Ingredients: lettuce, tomato, avocado, black beans, black olives, extra-sharp Cheddar

Beef Ingredients: ground chuck, medium onion, tomato sauce, garlic, serrano chiles, chili powder, ground cumin, olive oil, salt, pepper

Dressing Ingredients: lime juice, cilantro, sugar, chili powder, ground cumin, olive oil, salt, pepper

Tips/Notes:

• Used Impossible Beef
• Heated up the black beans

Recipe: Chipotle-Shrimp Tacos with Fennel and Beans

Chipotle-Shrimp Tacos with Fennel and Beans

Martha Stewart Living, Jun 2021, p. 102
4.8 stars

Reading the ingredients, I wasn't sure how this was going to turn out -- it was delicious! An easy weeknight meal. The longest part of prep is shelling (and deveining) the shrimp. We served this with black beans and rice.

Ingredients: tortillas, shrimp, pinto beans, fennel, chipotle in adobo, cilantro, garlic, extra-virgin olive oil, lime, vegetable oil, Kosher salt, pepper

Tips:

• Didn't grill -- sauteed them in a pan
• Make sure to buy sour cream as that would have made it amazing!

Recipe: Grilled Carrot Tostadas

Grilled Carrot Tostadas
Food & Wine Magazine, Oct 2024, p.42
4.8 stars

Even though I had purchased all of the ingredients for this recipe, we held off on making it ~ just didn't sound SUPER appetizing, but it turned out so much better than we thought it would!!! Great flavors and textures: creaminess of the cream cheese, crunch of the tostadas, acidity of the vinegar, sweetness of the date syrup, "herbiness" of the herbs.

We'd never eaten carrot tops before -- tasted like parsley.

Ingredients: tostadas, carrots with tops, cream cheese, cilantro, mint, jarred salsa macha, red wine vinegar, date molasses, olive oil, Kosher salt, black pepper

Tips/Notes:

• Added pepitas on top
• Roasted the carrots -- next time, need 3x the amount of carrots!
• Store was out of salsa macha both times so didn't use it
• Couldn't find date molasses but used date syrup instead
• Served with refried beans on the side (protein!)

Recipe: Cheesy Black Bean and Butternut Squash-Stuffed Poblanos

Cheesy Black Bean and Butternut Squash-Stuffed Poblanos

The Brain Health Kitchen, Annie Fenn, MD, p.237
4.5 stars

When eating this, I thought it was delicious, but as I've been eating the leftovers, it's been meh. Maybe if the cheese topping was a melty cheese like Monterey Jack or Mozzarella, it'd taste better. Cotija smells funky when heated up.

Overall, this was an easy base dish to make -- in the future, I can see us taking this and adding to it ~ like adding chipotle in adobo or fire-roasted tomatoes.

Ingredients: poblano peppers, butternut squash, corn, black beans, green enchilada sauce, goat cheese/feta or queso blanco, cilantro, pumpkin seeds, chili powder, Kosher salt

Tips/Notes:

• Used cotija -- next time, use a melty cheese
• Used frozen butternut squash and corn -- worked out just fine
• Used 5 poblanos but 4 would've worked as noted in the recipe
• Didn't make the quick-pickled Pomegranate red onions

Recipe: Beet Tostadas

Beet Tostadas

Food & Wine Magazine, Feb 2024, p. 35
4.7 stars

I was so intrigued by this recipe, though, there were so MANY steps so with our culinary knowledge, we modified it a bit. It was overall good but needed something with umami -- see notes below.

Beet Tostadas Ingredients: beets, black beans, yellow onion, guajillo chiles, garlic, limes, lime juice, ground cumin, ground coriander, chile powder, red pepper, Kosher salt, olive oil

Picked Vegetables Ingredients: scallions, jalapeno, radishes, lime juice, white wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar, sea salt

Additional Ingredients: tostadas, queso fresco or crumbled feta, cilantro, roasted pepitas, flaky sea salt

Tips/Notes:

• Used frozen beets already peeled and sliced -- roasted them for about 28 min with all ingredients but used guajillo chile powder and garlic powder
• Did not grate the beets
• Need to drain the black beans about 75% as the puree was too runny
• Used queso fresco; also bought Oaxaca cheese
• Added hot sauce to taste
• Skipped the roasted pepitas
• To add umami, add mushrooms or plant-based meat

Recipe: Spicy Southwest Quinoa Bowl

Spicy Southwest Quinoa Bowl

HalfBakedHarvest.com
4.7 stars

Delicious and healthy dinner!!! Great for a weeknight meal -- just remember to start early to roast the sweet potatoes.

Main Ingredients: quinoa, sweet potatoes, black beans, cilantro, avocado, queso fresco, tortillas, taco seasoning, lime, olive oil, salt, pepper

Mango Slaw Ingredients: mango, Tuscan kale, jalapeno, cilantro, olive oil, lime, sat

Charred Tomatillo Vinaigrette: tomatillos, green chiles, cilantro, olive oil, lime, salt

Tips/Notes:

• Made our own taco seasoning but may buy it next time
• Had this with quinoa chips instead of tortillas
• Oops - we forgot the avocado!
• Made half of the slaw which was enough
• Didn't make the Charred Tomatillo vinaigrette -- instead, used jarred green tomatillo salsa

Recipe: Asada Mushroom Tacos with Lime Smashed Avocado

Asada Mushroom Tacos with Lime Smashed Avocado

4.9 stars

HalfBakedHarvest.com

Delicious vegetarian tacos -- better than I expected! Loved the pineapple salsa along with the avocado. To get more protein, we served this with a side of seasoned black beans. 

Ingredients: tortillas, portobello mushroom caps, orange juice, garlic, chipotle in adobo, smoked paprika, limes, cilantro, extra virgin olive oil

Salted Lime Avocado Ingredients: avocado, lime, sea salt

Pineapple Salsa Ingredients: pineapple, jalapeno, lime, cilantro, feta or cotija

Tips/Notes:

• Used garlic powder instead of garlic
• Used 1 lime instead of 2 in the marinade
• Sliced avocado instead of making the smashed avocado
• Used serrano instead of jalapeno as jalapenos haven't been hot lately
• Used 1/2 of a lime in the pineapple salsa instead of a whole lime
• GRILL the mushrooms next time -- OR remember to put a rack on the baking sheet under the mushrooms because there is a lot of liquid from the mushrooms and marinade

Recipe: Rajas Con Crema

Rajas Con Crema (or Papas Con Rajas)

Bon Appetit Magazine, May 2023, p. 20
4.6 stars

Easy weekday dish with pretty nice flavor. Since there isn't any protein in it, we served it with black beans on the side -- plus chips and margaritas!

Ingredients: corn or flour tortillas, Yukon Gold potatoes, poblano chiles, white onion, chicken bouillon paste, crema mexicana or heavy cream and sour cream, lime wedges, garlic, jalapenos, butter, Kosher salt

Tips:

• Used Better Than Bouillon vegetable paste
• Used heavy cream and sour cream

Recipe: Roasted Cauliflower Tacos with Chipotle Romesco

Roasted Cauliflower Tacos with Chipotle Romesco

MinimalistBaker.com

4.9 stars

This was YUMMY and so easy to make! I almost gave this 5 stars. There's so much flavor and texture in these tacos -- beats almost any other vegetarian taco I've had!

Cauliflower Ingredients: cauliflower, oil, ground cumin, chili powder, smoked paprika, sea salt

Sauce Ingredients: fire-roasted tomatoes, almonds, chipotle in adobo, garlic, lime, smoked paprika, cumin, sea salt, maple syrup, olive oil

For Serving: tortillas, cilantro, red cabbage, pepitas, avocado, lime

Tips:

• Used roasted almonds instead of raw almonds to save time
• Didn't add in the 1-2 raw garlic cloves into the sauce
• Preferred flour tortillas to corn tortillas
• Used the pepitas from a Chick-fil-a salad (had extra packets) that I had in the pantry
• If using just 1 head of cauliflower, make half the sauce as there was a lot of sauce left over

Recipe: Chipotle Cauliflower Tacos

Chipotle Cauliflower Tacos

Bon Appetit Magazine, Feb 2023, p. 24
4.7 stars

Super duper easy weeknight recipe! Lots of flavor and overall healthy! 

Ingredients: corn tortillas, cauliflower, adobo sauce, cilantro, sour cream, limes, ground cumin, red onion, jalapeno, garlic, extra-virgin olive oil, Kosher salt

Tips:

• Pickled the onions
• Served with black beans mixed with quinoa and some spices (like cumin) on the side to add protein to the meal

Recipe: Breakfast-for-Dinner Burritos

Breakfast-for-Dinner Burritos

Martha Stewart Living, May 2022, p.55

4.8 stars

I love having breakfast for dinner!!! These breakfast burritos were super easy to make (especially for a quick weekday meal) and flavorful. 

Ingredients: tortillas, eggs, bacon, Yukon Gold potatoes, scallions, hominy, cheddar, extra-virgin olive oil, Kosher salt, pepper, salsa or hot sauce

Tips

• Yes, use the amount of scallions it calls for!
• Added New Mexico chile powder to add some flavor/complexity to the potato mixture
• Definitely add salsa on top -- nice addition

Recipe: Seven-Layer Chicken Burrito

Seven-Layer Chicken Burrito

Better Homes & Gardens, June 2022, p. 64

5 stars

So simple yet so DELICIOUS! This is a great weekday meal. Again/as always... chipotle in adobo adds an amazing layer of flavor!!! I used to like Taco Bell's Seven-Layer Burrito; this beats that by a long shot and is so much healthier. I think this actually has nine layers if you count them all!

Ingredients: flour tortillas, refried beans, shredded chicken, tomato, shredded spinach, shredded cheddar cheese, black olives, chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, salsa, guacamole, sour cream

Tips:

• We made "tacos" as we like the smaller fresh flour tortillas that we get at our local Central Market
• Baked Impossible Chicken Nuggets and diced them instead of using shredded chicken

Recipe: Spicy Poblano, Black Bean, and Quinoa Enchiladas

Spicy Poblano, Black Bean, and Quinoa Enchiladas

HalfBakedHarvest.com

4.6 stars

We're trying to eat more plant-based, and quinoa is one of the best grains that has protein in it! In these enchiladas, you can't even taste the quinoa!!! The dish was super easy to make -- but see tips below.

Ingredients: tortillas, quinoa, red enchilada sauce, black beans, poblano peppers, cilantro, sweet onion, limes, shredded cheddar, shredded pepper jack, garlic, jalapenos, ground cumin, extra virgin olive oil, Kosher salt, pepper

Topping Ingredients: avocado, yogurt, pomegranate arils

Tips:

• The filling is so good on its own -- we had a bit left over so froze it. We'll be eating this with chips for a future meal!
• Needs double the amount of cheese both inside and on top.
• The red enchilada sauce is pretty overpowering so you don't taste a lot of the great flavors inside the enchilada. That being said, it was really good and tasted like a restaurant beef enchilada with red sauce (but without the beef).
• Added a "salad" of lettuce, tomato, cilantro and avocado on top. We skipped the pomegranate arils and yogurt.

Recipe: Cheesy Lentil-and-Black Bean Nachos

Cheesy Lentil-and-Black Bean Nachos

Martha Stewart Living, Jan/Feb 2022, p.99

4.8 stars

Easy, delicious weeknight vegetarian meal!

Ingredients: tortilla chips, cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese, brown lentils, crushed fire-roasted tomatoes, black beans, portobello-mushroom caps, red onion, garlic, serrano, chili powder, extra-virgin olive oil, Kosher salt, ground pepper

Ingredients for serving: chopped tomatoes, fresh cilantro, lime

Tips:

• Had green lentils so used them instead of brown
• I thought the liquid was going to be too watery, but it did reduce down!
• Served with pickled sliced jalapenos
• Serve with sour cream next time

Recipe: New Mexican-Style Breakfast Burritos

New Mexican-Style Breakfast Burritos
Bon Appetit Magazine, Oct 2021, p.78
4.6 stars

Potential ski-trip breakfast recipe! This is similar to what we make when we're skiing -- a hearty burrito, except this recipe definitely has a "New Mexico" taste/flair to it because of the New Mexico chiles in the sauce.

Sauce Ingredients: New Mexico chiles, garlic, Mexican oregano, all-purpose flour, Kosher salt

Burrito Ingredients: tortillas, sausage to your liking, eggs, cheddar, russet potato, New Mexico green chiles, unsalted butter, garlic powder, extra-virgin olive oil, Kosher salt, black pepper

Tips:

• Used plant-based sausage
• Couldn't find New Mexico chiles so used New Mexico chile powder
• Added white onion to the sauce
• Couldn't find New Mexico green chiles so used a can of hot Hatch green chiles
• Cooked the potato, plant-based meat and Hatch green chiles together
• Made "tacos" instead of a burrito

Sheet Pan Cheesy Poblano Corn Enchiladas

Sheet Pan Cheesy Poblano Corn Enchiladas

HalfBakedHarvest.com

5 stars

This dish was so good that even hubby called this a 5 star recipe because it was so flavorful. This is a vegetarian dish, but you won't miss the meat. The leftovers went fast on this one. The recipe makes about 16 enchiladas (1 full large rectangular Pyrex dish and another square Pyrex dish).

Ingredients: tortillas, cheddar cheese, pepper jack cheese, corn, poblano peppers, zucchini, yellow onion, cilantro, basil, garlic, salsa verde, chipotle chilies in adobo, smoked paprika, honey, extra virgin olive oil, Kosher salt, black pepper

Top with: avocado, sour cream, cotija or feta, squeeze of lime

Tips

• Used frozen corn
• Used 2 zucchini instead of 1
• Added cumin
• Added 1 can of black beans
• Added jalapenos

Recipe: Crispy Cheese Burritos with Chorizo and Eggs

Crispy Cheese Burritos with Chorizo and Eggs

Food and Wine Magazine, Feb 2021, p. 35

4.8 stars

Super quick and easy weekday meal! I thought this was as good as Torchy's Tacos...

Ingredients: flour tortillas, Mexican chorizo, eggs, sharp cheddar cheese, black beans, white onion, cilantro, jalapenos, canola oil, Kosher salt, black pepper, avocado, tomatillo salsa

Tips:

• Didn't sizzle the cheese on the tortilla -- instead, we melted the cheese on the tortilla in the microwave
• Added red pepper
• Used full can of black beans
• Bought regular salsa vs. tomatillo salsa
• Made eggs only for this meal (vs. making extra with the need to reheat the eggs later)

Recipe: Lunch Nachos with Spiced Cauliflower

Lunch Nachos with Spiced Cauliflower

Bon Appetit Magazine, Mar 2021, p. 37

4.8 stars

Discovered another great weeknight meal -- that's economical too! I was just thinking about the last time we ordered nachos from a restaurant for pick up. It was so expensive and a pathetically small portion. 

I wasn't sure about the spiced cauliflower, but it worked! Added some cholula on top and a margarita on the side, and this was a great dinner.

Ingredients: tortilla chips, refried beans, cauliflower, radishes, carrots, sharp cheddar, avocado, cilantro, plain yogurt, seasoned rice vinegar, ground coriander, ground cumin, paprika, extra-virgin olive oil, garlic, Kosher salt

Tips:

• Heat up the beans fully on the stove
• Either grease the sheet pan or use a silpat mat (we used foil and the nachos and cheese stuck to it)
• Use sour cream or creme fraiche instead of yogurt